CT man arrested for illegal deer tagging

A Newotwn man was arrested for illegal deer tagging.(Connecticut State Environmental Conservation Police)

A 65-year-old man was arrested after police said imported a deer from a Chronic Wasting Disease state.

Connecticut State Environmental Conservation Police and the United States Fish & Wildlife Service arrested Newtown resident Wayne Simko for falsely reporting deer.

The arrest of Simko comes after a report of a 24-point buck taken in Bridgewater in February. Connecticut State Environmental Conservation Police learned that the buck “had a very large non-typical rack and the cape was clear of any blemishes caused by tick bites suggesting that it was not from a wild deer herd in Connecticut.”

Connecticut State Environmental Conservation Police learned that Simko hunted and harvested the buck from a captive deer farm in Pennsylvania on Nov. 5, 2016.

Through their investigation, Connecticut State Environmental Conservation Police discovered that Simko “did not process the meat for consumption, did not clean the deer as required prior to preparing it for mounting and illegally brought the whole buck back to Connecticut.”

Police said Simko tagged the buck and then falsely reported to harvesting the animal in Bridgewater.

The buck would have to score by Pope & Young, which “scores wild deer harvested by bow for official records.” Police said Pope & Young declined to “score” the buck because it was from a captive raised farm deer.

Connecticut State Environmental Conservation Police said deer from Chronic Wasting Disease confirmed state “must be properly reported when harvested and must be processed for consumption and cleaned prior to being brought into Connecticut.” Chronic Wasting Disease is “contagious in deer and once it is established in the herd it is very difficult to eradicate.”

Simko was released on a $2,500. He is scheduled to be arraigned at Bantam Superior Court on June 19.